


Freedom

by subdivisions



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-18
Updated: 2017-10-29
Packaged: 2018-11-15 18:59:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,353
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11237208
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/subdivisions/pseuds/subdivisions
Summary: Satya has been clinging to her diminishing faith in Vishkar ever since the uprising in Rio de Janeiro. When Overwatch reaches out to her via Jesse McCree, she refuses to let go of the only life she has ever known - until she has no other choice but to leave it behind. Forced to work with Overwatch despite wanting nothing to do with it or any of its members, Satya begins to understand something she's never believed in: freedom.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first Overwatch fanfic and my first real Symmccree fic!!! There's not much content for this ship so I decided to try and contribute some of my own. You can also read it on my Overwatch tumblr, sugar-watch.tumblr.com

Her drink was too sweet.

Satya pushed it aside, tapping her prosthetic fingers restlessly against her thigh. It was a small thing, ordering a different drink than she normally did, but instead of the refreshing sense of excitement she had expected, all she was left with was a bad aftertase and irritation buzzing in the back of her mind. She scowled at the drink, a brightly-colored thing - some new iced waste of money. A disappointment.

 _I should’ve expected as much,_ she thought, turning to look out the café’s window at the sterile beauty of Utopaea outside. People passed by, some with businesslike strides and serious faces, others with easy smiles as they chatted with the person next to them, and more with their eyes on their holovids. The streets were filled with sleek, round cars, all zipping along to their destinations at dizzying speeds. It was the same view she had enjoyed every day for years now. Utopaea - paradise. A beacon of order and perfection in a world of chaos.

The shining white buildings seemed dull, lately.

A shadow fell across the table - the familiar, thin shape of her usual omnic waitress. “How is your drink, ma’am?”

Her gentle, robotic voice was a welcome comfort. “Far too sweet,” Satya said, not looking at her. “Could I just have my usual instead, please?”

 _How childish,_ she thought, _to expect enlightenment from something as frivolous as trying a new drink._

It had seemed a reasonable thing, all things considered. Perhaps a deviation from the norm, a break in the givens - perhaps one small thing would give her the clarity of mind to see what she needed to do, to pick the truth out of her cluttered thoughts. After what had happened in Rio de Janeiro three years ago, it was something she still needed badly. But now, she only felt a slightly desperate need to return to normalcy, even if she’d never strayed far from its safe shores in the first place, and even  though she knew that normalcy was nothing more than a shoddily-made dinghy that was barely making it over the smallest waves.

The disappointment lingering on her tongue deepened. A shadow fell across her table again.

For a second, Satya expected to hear the waitress’s smooth voice announcing the arrival of her usual tea, but then she realised the shadow was far too large and not the right shape. She looked up and caught the brown eyes of the man hovering over her table. He smiled; she frowned.

“May I help you?” she asked icily, not liking the way he loomed over her.

“Satya Vaswani?” the man asked. An American, judging by his drawl. “Mind if I sit? There’s somethin’ I’d like to discuss with you.”

She looked the man up and down. The cowboy hat he wore sat atop unruly brown hair; a beard surrounded his slightly grizzled face. A red sarape was draped over his broad shoulders, falling to his belt buckle - a gaudy gold thing with letters engraved in it that read _BAMF._ She noticed, with some trepidation, a gun in the holster on his right hip. The sarape he wore covered most of his left arm, but she saw the glint of metal as his hands moved to grip his belt. He was wearing chaps, and as Satya’s eyes fell to his feet, she saw his riding boots had spurs. He really was taking the cowboy thing all the way. She looked back up to his face, frown deepening.

“Who are you,” she said slowly, “and how do you know my name?”

The man tipped his hat to her as he slipped into the seat opposite her, apparently no longer interested in waiting for her permission. “The name’s McCree - Jesse McCree. And your name, Miss Vaswani, is plastered across just about every magazine I’ve come across in this city, but that’s not how I know you. I’m sure you’ve heard from my friends.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Your friends… from Overwatch, I presume.”

He nodded. “That’s us.”

Overwatch. She knew what it had once been; she knew it had fallen apart and she knew that all Overwatch activity was outlawed. She’d heard whispers of its revival and chose to ignore it, thinking that their vigilantism would be taken care of quickly… only it hadn’t and, a few months after hearing that Overwatch was active again, she had received correspondence from someone named Winston who claimed to be the new leader of Overwatch. 

Winston, as it turned out, was a talking gorilla.

That fact had not fazed Satya too much. What had bothered her more than anything was that Winston had asked her to join the new Overwatch. _The world needs heroes,_ he had said. Satya had told him she was nothing of the sort and wasn’t keen on being one.

“Then you’ll know I told your _friend_ Winston that I was not interested in becoming an international fugitive,” Satya said, scowling and tapping the fingers of her left hand against her thigh again. “I should report your presence here to the authorities.”

“You won’t do that,” McCree replied easily. His confidence was irritating. “I know you turned Winston down, Miss Vaswani. That’s why I’m here.”

“Your tea, ma’am.” The waitress returned, setting Satya’s tea in front of her before turning her optics to McCree. “Good morning, sir. Can I get you anything?”

“A coffee, if you please. Black, no sugar.”

The waitress walked away and Satya crossed her arms, openly glaring at McCree. “If you intend to ask me again, my answer will not change. I am not interested in ‘being a hero,’ as Winston put it, and I’m _certainly_ not interested in being a _criminal._ I have no intention of joining you. I am quite happy with Vishkar Corporation and I don’t intend to abandon my position.”

McCree stared at her for a long moment. “If you don’t mind my sayin’, Miss Vaswani, you don’t look like somebody who’s happy with her position. If you ask me, you look like someone who’s lost. Real lost.”

She opened her mouth, closed it again, and settled for glowering at her tea.

“I heard about what happened in Rio three years ago,” McCree went on, leaning back. “Didn’t pay much attention when it happened; I had my own business to attend to. But I heard that the folks livin’ in Rio didn’t take to kindly to - what’s it called? Vishkar? They didn’t take too kindly to y’all comin’ in and doin’ whatever it is y’all do.”

“What we do is shape order from chaos,” Satya ground out. “We were going to make their lives better. Give them structure. Housing. Jobs. Bring order to their lives, and with order, _peace._ ”

“Sounds like a good deal,” McCree said, nodding. “So why’d they chase y’all out of town, then?”

“If all you have known is chaos, you will be quick to reject order,” Satya replied, lifting her chin. “They were too concerned with their _freedom.”_

“I’m American, Miss Vaswani. I’m all about freedom.” McCree looked at her hard, leaning forward and resting his arms atop the table. “But the people of Rio chasin’ y’all out of their city… you’re sure it had nothin’ to do with the fire in the favela that happened when y’all’s competitor’s building suddenly exploded? Or that the housing y’all promised them never came? Or the fact that y’all started imposing strict laws and harsh punishments, or usin’ them for cheap labor - “

“Shut up.”

Satya had barely whispered the words, but McCree fell silent all the same. The waitress came with his coffee, setting it down in front of him before ghosting away, saying nothing to break the tense silence that had settled between them. 

When he spoke again, it was quietly. Satya did not look at him.

“I suggest, Miss Vaswani,” McCree said, “that you take a good, hard, long look at your company and the things they do. Both inside and out.” He paused. “ I don’t think you’re a bad person like I've heard. I like to think you really do have good intentions. But I think that you might just be bein’ used, ‘cause you’re a little too trustin’.”

Satya stood abruptly. Her seat scraped noisily against the floor, but she didn’t care. Without another word, she shouldered her bag and left, leaving McCree behind with her now-cold tea and his steaming mug of coffee.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Depending on how well it goes over I'll start planning more and slowly posting more chapters!


	2. Chapter 2

_If you don’t mind my sayin’, Miss Vaswani, you don’t look like someone who’s happy with her position._

_I suggest, Miss Vaswani, that you take a good, hard, long look at your company and the things they do._

As Satya stormed away from the café, McCree’s words rattled around in her skull. Part of her was trembling with fury - how _dare_ he make such accusations about Vishkar _(even if part of her knew what he said to be true. She had watched - uselessly concerned, horribly complicit - as housing never came, as the ‘jobs’ promised were revealed to be low-paying near-sweatshop work)_ but the rest of her was shaken. He had seen, after barely a few minutes of time with her, how unhappy and lost she truly was. And she hadn’t even been able to argue with him, hadn’t even been able to let a lie about being _perfectly happy_ or tell him that _he knew nothing about her, or Vishkar -_

Satya tried to shake the thoughts away, and when they persisted, she stubbornly ignored them. She was never going to have to see Jesse McCree, or interact with anyone else from Overwatch, ever again, and there was no need dwelling on anything McCree had said. Determined not to think about it anymore, she made up her mind to go to work, even though it was her off day. Nothing relaxed her more than planning new developments, designing sleek and efficient buildings that would comfortably house those who needed it most, weaving miniature model cities out of hard-light and…

How she wished she could’ve seen her designs come to fruition in Rio de Janeiro.

Satya reached for her phone, intending to call for a rideshare service, but before she could even open the application her phone began to ring. The name that appeared was a familiar one - Sanjay Korpal, a senior director at Vishkar, and the man she directly answered to.

For a long cluster of seconds - _too long,_ she thought - she let her phone buzz insistently in her hand. She did not want to talk to Sanjay. Surely he had another _assignment_ for her _;_ she thought of the Calado building in Rio. Another act of corporate espionage for her to undertake… for the greater good, of course, as Vishkar was better equipped than any organization to redevelop a struggling city. She wondered if he’d be having any buildings blown up this time around.

Steeling herself, Satya answered the phone. “Hello?”

 _“Satya.”_ Sanjay’s voice was as smooth and businesslike as ever. _“I was beginning to think you weren’t going to answer.”_

Satya cursed herself. She had waited too long to answer. “My apologies. I had to find my phone in my bag.”

A lie, and she was sure Sanjay knew it. Satya was far too organized to misplace her phone, even in her own purse.

_“It’s fine. Listen - there’s something I need to discuss with you. Could you come and meet me in my office?”_

Satya pursed her lips.“I was on my way to the office anyway,” she said. “Let me go home and change into my uniform first - “

 _“There’s no need for that,”_ he interrupted. _“We aren’t meeting in any… official capacity.”_

This confused her, but she knew Sanjay - if she asked him to elaborate, he would only continue to insist that she come to his office for answers. Instead, she said, “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

_“Excellent. I’ll see you then, Satya.”_

He hung up, not waiting for her to respond. Sighing, Satya went to open the rideshare app again.

Twenty-five minutes later, Satya stepped into Sanjay’s office. She gave the room a once-over; it was big, as was befitting his position in the company, and the same creamy off-white with muted gold accents as the rest of Utopaea. The walls were mostly bare, except for a few abstract hard-light artworks and his degrees and achievements. His desk was almost as bare as his walls, save for a few hard-light knicknacks made by some of his star pupils from the Architech Academy. Satya spotted one that she had made, just before graduating from the Academy. 

Sanjay himself was sitting at his desk. Satya could see his uncharacteristically grim countenance through one of three holographic computer screens; his fingers were steepled beneath his nose as he skimmed the contents of several documents open on his desktop. He glanced up at Satya as she entered, then stood as his expression relaxed into an easy smile; it did nothing to alleviate the dread pooling low in Satya’s stomach.

At one point, Satya had felt nothing but confidence stepping into to Sanjay’s office. Being called there meant she was about to receive a mission - important work in moving Vishkar, and the rest of the world, towards a better tomorrow. Since Rio de Janeiro and her assignment involving the Calado building, that confidence was gone, replaced with nothing but distrust and suspicion. As Sanjay moved around the desk to greet Satya, she hung back near the door with a small, careful smile.

“Satya,” Sanjay said. “Thank you for coming on such short notice.”

“It was no problem,” Satya replied. She did not like pleasantries; she jumped right to the point. “What is it that you’ve called me here for, Sanjay?”

Sanjay’s smile quirked a little. “Of course. Let’s not waste any time.”

He turned away, moving to the window that made up the wall behind his desk and looking out at the glittering city of Utopaea. As the morning bled into afternoon, the sun made the sterile whiteness and the shimmering gold shine nearly blindingly. Satya found it hard to look at.

“I know that Overwatch has contacted you,” Sanjay said.

Satya’s brain came to a screeching halt. She began to tap the fingers of her left hand against her thigh. “Their correspondence with me was unsolicited and - “ Her tongue hesitated before proceeding haltingly with a lie. “I have had no further contact with them.”

Sanjay chuckled, turning back to look at her with an amused smile. “There’s no need to be so worried, Satya. I’m not upset that Overwatch has contacted you. In fact, I’m glad. It will make your next assignment that much easier.”

Anxiety squeezed and pulled at Satya’s stomach. She stared at him, silent, as Sanjay began to pace the length of his office.

“I’ve had eyes on Overwatch since the recall was initiated,” Sanjay began, scooping up one of the hard-light sculptures on his desk. He rolled it around in his hands as he walked and talked. “The surveillance was due, in part, to fears from executives and shareholders that should the new Overwatch gain any traction it would, in true misguided vigilante fashion, attempt to interfere with future or even established Vishkar developments, especially after what occured in Rio de Janeiro. This fear only grew when my sources discovered that Lúcio Correia dos Santos had joined Overwatch’s ranks.”

He didn’t have to explain who Lúcio Correia dos Santos was. Satya knew - _oh,_ did she know. She, and many other Vishkar agents, had crossed paths with him more than once. It had started first with brief detainments for breaking curfew or violating the noise ordinance with his underground musical performances. Every time he was arrested he spat idiotic rhetoric about _freedom_ for his people and Vishkar’s ‘regime,’ which had been ignored until he started breaking into Vishkar facilities and eventually stole Vishkar technology that was being developed for breaking up the protests that the people of Rio had started holding - protests dos Santos was often at the helm of. He had somehow reversed engineered the technology and used it to lead the uprising that still haunted Satya even as she stood in Sanjay’s office three years later.

Lúcio Correia dos Santos was the reason Vishkar no longer had a presence in Rio de Janeiro.

“We fear that dos Santos may feed misinformation about Vishkar and our practices and agenda to Overwatch, thus leading to unnecessary interference and pushback from them and countless other parties,” Sanjay went on.

 _Misinformation,_ Satya thought. McCree’s words slithered back into her mind _\- The people of Rio chasin’ y’all out of their city… you’re sure it had nothin’ to do with the fire in the favela… the housing y’all promised them never came… the fact that y’all started imposing strict laws and harsh punishments, or usin’ them for cheap labor -_

“That’s where you come in, Satya.”

She looked up. “Pardon?”

“You will make contact with Overwatch. You will tell them that you are interested in joining them. And then you will work to foster a positive opinion of the Vishkar Corporation in its members. By offering your services - by all appearances, on Vishkar’s behalf - they will be less likely to see us as a threat or look at Vishkar activities with any real scrutiny.”

“Sanjay,” Satya said, voice trembling slightly.

He ignored her. “You will also monitor and report _to me_ all Overwatch activity. I will expect weekly reports sent directly to my personal email. It is imperative that you send your reports directly to me and me alone. Understand?”

“Of course, but I…”

“Your final mission involves dos Santos. I want specific information about him and the technology he stole from us in Rio de Janeiro included in your weekly report.” Sanjay lifted his chin. “Your instructions may change over the course of your mission, Satya, particularly those involving dos Santos. You must be prepared - “

“ _Sanjay,”_ Satya interrupted. She gripped her skirt tightly in both hands. “I do not understand. Joining Overwatch would make me a criminal - I would be in direct violation of the Petras Act. If I were to be caught, not only would I be arrested but it would ruin my career - my _life -_ “

“You needn’t be so worried,” Sanjay assured her. He looked as if he thought her fears were _ungrounded_ and _amusing._ “If at any time you believe that the mission has been compromised or you are in danger of being caught by international authorities, simply ask for extraction. The Vishkar Corporation will handle any coverups necessary.”

“Exactly how long do you expect me to be away from my Utopaea? From my work?” Satya asked, sounding a little desperate. 

“Until I - and the shareholders and executives - feel that we are no longer threatened by Overwatch’s existence.”

“Sanjay, I implore you to reconsider this mission,” Satya said, holding her hands out to him. “It is far too risky and dangerous, and I am one of Vishkar’s most talented agents. To separate me from my work for such a long time…”

“Once again, Satya, you needn’t worry.” Sanjay smiled at the hard-light sculpture in his hands, lifting it to the overhead light. “There are others to whom we can delegate your work, and there are many rising stars at the Architech Academy that remind me so much of you. Do not worry, Satya; Vishkar will continue to carry on in your absence.”

His words stirred up a revelation within Satya: to Vishkar, and to Sanjay, she was replaceable. Should something happen to her on this mission, nothing at Vishkar Corporation would change. And, even worse, should she choose _not_ to accept the mission, someone else - maybe even one of the so-called _rising stars_ at the Architech Academy, would be chosen to carry it out instead, and the very idea scared her even more than the idea of becoming an internationally-wanted criminal.

“All right, Sanjay,” Satya said quietly, dropping her eyes to the floor. “I accept this assignment.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took me way longer than it should have to finish this chapter, but it's done now!!! The more I plan out for this story, the more I get excited to really get into the meat of it. I hope I can do these characters justice.


	3. Chapter 3

By the time Satya found it in herself to contact Winston, night had fallen. Many hours had passed since she had left Sanjay’s office; she had wasted the whole day away, no longer having the motivation to work but still managing to find something, anything, that was marginally more important than committing to joining Overwatch. And when she was out of things to do, she sat at her desk in her home office, fingers hovering over the _call_ button on her holoscreen, trying to overcome the urge to just _not._

Satya took a deep breath. She had been given a mission. That’s all it was. She was not _committing_ to Overwatch by doing this - if anything, she was simply cementing her commitment to the Vishkar Corporation. Sitting up straight and wiping all expression from her face, Satya steeled herself and tapped the button beneath her finger and waited.

The screen went dark except for a spinning circle, a timer counting up in the corner, and a dial tone. It continued for some time, and for a moment she thought that perhaps - hopefully? - Winston would not answer -

And then the gorilla filled up the screen. Satya thought he looked surprised to see that she had called. He was in the same lab he had been in the first time she spoke with him. A pile of empty peanut butter jars to his side had grown larger in the time that had passed. 

“Miss Vaswani,” Winston says, reaching up to straighten his glasses. “I’m surprised to hear from you. You were pretty, uh… adamant about not being interested, and Agent McCree reported that you had turned him down as well.”

“The circumstances have changed,” Satya said flatly. “I have changed my mind and decided to give Overwatch a try.”

Winston blinked, and then his face erupted into a toothy grin. “Well! That’s great to hear, Miss Vaswani! I’m sure you’ll make a great addition to our - “

“Oh, Winston~!”

The voice that interrupted him was high-pitched and accented. Less than a second later there was a flash of blue light and a tiny woman with short brown hair and a strange glowing device wrapped around her chest was throwing an arm over Winston’s massive shoulders as best she could, waving a banana in his face.

“You’ve been working all day and I thought you could use your favourite treat as a pick-me-up!” the woman said. Satya recognized her accent as British. As Winston took the banana with a roll of his eyes and a smile, reaching offscreen to set the banana aside, the woman leaned close to the camera and peered curiously at Satya. “Oi, Winston. Who’re you talking to?”

“I am Symmetra,” Satya answered. She thought recognition flitted across the woman’s face, but she didn’t say anything if she recognized the name. “…Satya. Satya Vaswani.”

“Miss Vaswani here has decided to join Overwatch,” Winston explained. The woman next to him absolutely lit up.

“Really?” The woman leaned back, clapping her hands in excitement. “That’s brilliant! “I’m Lena Oxton! Callsign Tracer.” Lena began to hop in place, positively buzzing with excitement. “You know, at the beginning of the recall, I was so afraid that it was just going to be me and Winston, but then some of the other old agents started responding, and now new faces like you are joining too, and it’s really getting lively around here! I can’t wait to meet you in person. I’ll be happy to take you around the Watchpoint when you get here, if you like, and introduce you to all the others…”

Satya fidgeted as Lena continued to ramble. She was not a talkative person by any means, and while she appreciated Lena’s enthusiasm, it was more than a bit overwhelming. Thankfully, Winston seemed to notice Satya’s discomfort and cut in, placing a large hand on Lena’s shoulder. 

“Uh, Lena.” Winston cleared his throat. “Miss Vaswani and I still have a lot to discuss and it’s getting late. You can have a real conversation with her later, once she’s here in person.”

“You’re right, Winston. My bad.” Lena waved enthusiastically at Satya. “It was nice meeting you, Satya! I look forward to working with you.”

“The feeling is mutual,” Satya lied, forcing a small smile. With that, Lena was gone in another streak of blue light. 

“Sorry about that,” Winston said awkwardly, fixing his glasses again. “Lena is… excitable, to say the least. But she is, if you’ll excuse me, a damn good pilot - the best and only one we’ve got right now. That aside, Miss Vaswani, I have to ask… are you sure about joining Overwatch? Joining will put you in violation of the Petras Act -”

Irritation made Satya’s tongue sharp. “If I were not sure, Winston, believe me when I say you would not be speaking to me right now. I am aware of the law and the risks.”

Winston cleared his throat again. “Of course. My apologies. In that case, I’ll send Lena to extract both you and Agent McCree at your earliest convenience.”

“I will need at least three days,” was Satya’s businesslike reply. She was efficient - she did not think packing would not take long, and while there were a few matters she needed to attend to regarding finances and the like, they could always be taken care of over the phone or online. There was no need to waste unnecessary amounts of time. The quicker her mission truly began, the quicker she could end it.

They briefly discussed making contact with Agent McCree, who was still somewhere in Utopaea, and the extraction time and point, and then Winston informed her that she would be fully instated as a member of Overwatch when she arrived at the Watchpoint; someone named Athena would put her into the system, and she would be given access to all Overwatch resources from that point on. 

“I think that’s everything for now,” Winston said finally. Satya felt herself relax.

“In that case, thank you for your time, Winston,” she said, but he shook his head.

“I should be thanking you, Miss - no, Agent Vaswani,” he replied. “It’s people like you that remind me that there is hope for the future - for Overwatch and for the world. I really do look forward to working with you.”

He was so sincere about it. Satya felt guilt beginning to press down on her shoulders; she shook it off. “…And I look forward to working with you as well, Winston.”

“Good night, Agent Vaswani. I’ll see you soon.” 

And then he ended the call. Satya stared at the holoscreen as it went black, then returned to the recent calls list. After a long moment, she sighed and stood. 

She thought of making herself dinner, but after realising she was not hungry, she made up her mind to go ahead and begin packing. As she went to her bedroom closet and pulled out her suitcases, she began to make a mental list of the things she needed to do. She would need to go shopping for non-perishables and tea; she did not imagine that much of what she liked to eat or, for that matter, real Indian cuisine would be available at the Watchpoint, wherever it happened to be (Winston had not been willing to state his current location over an unsecured channel). As she pulled clothes from her closet and dresser, she realised how much of her wardrobe consisted of business attire. She doubted she would have much need of it with Overwatch. She pulled out all of the outfits she used on missions, as well as all of her most casual and least businesslike clothes, followed by all her undergarments and sleepwear, and stacked them neatly next to her suitcase.

She sat down crosslegged on her bed and began to pack in earnest, but it was mere minutes before her motivation waned. She found herself staring at the shirt she held in her hands, thinking of nothing, for almost five minutes before she shook herself back into reality and lifted her head to look out the window at the city of Utopaea.

At night, it sparkled. It was a comforting sight; the darkness broken by lights signalling the lives of others, moving on under the white and gold net of safety that Utopaea symbolized. She almost thought it was beautiful again.

She did not want to leave Utopaea, she realized.

It was not like homesickness; she traveled plenty for Vishkar and often spent months at a time or more away from Utopaea as she oversaw a new development. Something else, almost akin to fear, was bubbling within her. If she left Utopaea like this, whispered a foul little voice in her ear, she would no longer be able to hide.

She wasn’t sure what she was hiding from in the first place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was kind of a lull in things; I promise they pick up in the next chapter. Things really get rolling then!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait. I wanna thank everyone who has commented and left kudos - they mean a lot!!

The insistent, harsh sound of his phone vibrating against wood shook Jesse from his sleep, and he rolled over with a groan, flinging an arm towards the nightstand and groping around for his phone. He squinted at the screen, and saw that the name was one he had added very recently: Satya Vaswani.

Her information had been sent to Jesse by Winston the same day she had very adamantly declared to Jesse that she had no interest in joining Overwatch. Apparently at some point after leaving the café, she had changed her mind. He wondered if it was something he had said. Regardless, Winston had asked him to be ready for extraction in three days, which was probably why she was calling.

Jesse hit the talk button and put the phone to his ear. “Hello?”

 _“Mr. McCree?”_ Satya asked. He hummed groggily to confirm. _“I apologize if I woke you.”_

She didn’t sound very sorry at all, but Jesse chose not to comment on that. “It’s fine, it’s fine. What can I do for you, Miss Vaswani?”

_“Miss Oxton… Tracer should be arriving soon. I was wondering if you would like to.. to meet up so that we might go to the extraction point together.”_

“I see no problem with that.” Jesse checked the time. “How ‘bout we meet at that café where we met before in, say, 45 minutes. That sound all right to you?”

_“Yes, that would be fine.”_

She said nothing more, so Jesse prepared to hang up. “In that case, I’ll see you-“

 _“Just a moment, Mr. McCree. I… there’s something else.”_ Satya paused, long enough that Jesse wondered if she was actually going to say anything. And then, she went on, _“I’d like to apologize for the way I stormed out the other day. It was unprofessional of me, and I hope it has not soured your perception of me, since we will be working together from now on.”_

“It didn’t bother me not one bit, Miss Vaswani,” Jesse assured her, smiling to himself. “After all, I did say some things I had no business sayin’. You got no reason to apologize.”

 _“Yes, well.”_ Satya cleared her throat. _“I felt it needed to be said. And it seemed easier to say over the phone, rather than in person…”_ She cleared her throat again. _“I’ll see you in 45 minutes, Mr. McCree.”_

“See you then, darlin’.”

She hung up. Jesse sighed, letting his hand fall to the pillow, before stretching. After laying there, staring at the ceiling, he finally threw his legs over the bed and stood.

He was staying in the cheapest hotel he could find in Utopaea, and that in itself was hard; the cost of living in Vishkar developments was high, in more ways than one. He’d heard it from Lúcio, but seeing it himself was something else. After Satya had turned him down, Jesse had intended to spend the rest of his time in the city as a vacation of sorts, but between the prices and the cold sterility of the place, relaxing had been a chore more than anything else. He was relieved to be rid of the place.

Around 45 minutes later, he was walking up to the cafe with his one bag slung over his shoulder. Satya was already there; she frowned when she noticed him approaching, and looked at her watch. 

“You are nearly ten minutes late, Mr. McCree,” she scolded. Jesse offered her a sheepish smile.

“‘Scuse me, Miss Vaswani,” he said, holding up a hand. “I got held up when Lena contacted me. As it turns out, our ride is still a little less than an hour out, so since we’ve got some time to kill…” Jesse motioned to the café. “How about some coffee? Or tea, if that’s what you like.”

Her frown relaxed slightly, and she gave him a small nod before reaching to pick up her suitcases. Jesse reached for one, and saw her start to wave him off, but then seemed to change her mind and allowed him to take it.

Inside, she went straight to the booth she had been in the other day, and Jesse took the seat across from her after setting her bags down next to her feet. No sooner had he dropped his bag into the seat next to him than the waitress appeared, looking between them. It wasn’t visible on her face, but she looked between the two of them with what Jesse thought to be curiosity. She had to have remembered how Satya had stormed out on him the other day. And now, here they were together, clearly about to travel. Jesse could only imagine what she thought was going on.

“Welcome,” the waitress said. “What can I get for you two?”

“The usual, please,” Satya said, and nothing more.

“Coffee, please,” Jesse said. “Black, no sugar.”

The waitress nodded and ghosted away. After she was gone, silence fell over the table. Jesse leaned forward, crossing his arms over the tabletop.

“So,” he said, breaking the silence. “What made you change your mind?”

“If you’re asking if it was you who managed to convince me, the answer is no,” Satya replied, not looking at him. “As I told Winston, changing circumstances led me to reevaluate my decision. Let me assure you, I have not parted ways with Vishkar.”

Something about the way she said it gave Jesse the sense that her reasons were personal. He made up his mind not to ask her about it again.

“That aside, Mr. McCree,” Satya said, and folded her hands neatly atop the table, “if I may, I’d like to know more about the people I will be working with. Would you tell me about them?”

“Gladly, but only if you promise to stop callin’ me _Mr. McCree,”_ Jesse said, smiling. She seemed embarrassed, so he added, “It’s just a little too formal for my tastes. Jesse is fine. McCree on missions.”

“Fine. Jesse it is, then,” she agreed. She said nothing more, even though Jesse had almost expected her to give him permission to call her by her first name. She seemed like someone who preferred to be addressed a certain way, so he wasn’t very surprised.

“All right then. Where do I start?” Jesse leaned back, crossing his arms and looking up at the ceiling in thought. “A few of the former members, myself, Lena, and Winston included, joined up when Winston put out the recall. There’s Angela, our medic, and Genji. Angela is sweet, and Genji’s a good guy. Mellowed out a whole lot since the old days. Reinhardt is an older fella, and… well, he’s a good guy, too, but he’s big and he’s loud, but he’ll do anythin’ for a friend. And Torbjörn is old, and stuck in his ways, but he’s a good guy if you can get past his, uh. Omnic-hating. He don’t get along too well with some of our newer members, to say the least.”

“Hm,” was all Satya said, glancing the omnic waitress walking towards them with their drinks.

The waitress set each of their drinks down before them and left. Jesse blew on his coffee and took a sip before continuing. “Then, there’s the new faces, like you. Fareeha’s mama was apart of Overwatch. Once she heard about the recall, she was all in. Zenyatta came with Genji. He’s an omnic monk, or somethin’. Kind of guy who can look at you and know all your secrets, seems like. Then there’s Hana. Weird kid. Plays video games for a livin’, and that’s what you’ll find her doin’ most of the time. And there’s Bastion - an old Bastion unit Torbjörn ran into. For some reason, he ain’t hostile towards humans. And then there’s Soldier: 76. And, of course, Lúcio…” He trailed off then, seeing Satya stiffen. “Somethin’ wrong?”

“It’s nothing,” she said flatly. “Please, go on.”

“That’s everyone, Miss Vaswani.” He stared at her. “It’s Lúcio, ain’t it?”

She said nothing.

“Lúcio told me about Vishkar, and about you, y’know.” Jesse lifted his mug to his mouth, but did not drink from it. “He told all of us about Rio, when Winston first mentioned reachin’ out to you.”

Satya rubbed her fingers against the side of her cup, something like nervousness flickering across her features. “His tales are one-sided falsehoods. I doubt anything he told you was true.” She paused. “…I’m sure his stories were enough to convince all of you that we’re the oppressive monsters he believes us to be, though.”

“I prefer to make my own judgements about people, Miss Vaswani,” Jesse replied, shrugging. “I can’t speak for everyone else, but if you ask me, I think decidin’ to join us is a good first step in changin’ everyone’s minds.”

Satya remained silent, never looking up from her tea. Jesse chose not to break the silence this time, instead watching her roll her words around in her head. After a moment, she shook her head, and began to drink her tea.

He couldn’t help but wonder what her reasons for changing her mind were. Even if he had decided not to ask anymore, the curiousity - and a touch of suspicion - lingered in the back of his mind. He stared at her over the lip of his mug. 

She was awful pretty, he thought. She just looked so damn unhappy.

It was at that moment that the comm in his ear pinged - cell phones weren’t secure, so Jesse had used it for all communication other than talking to Satya earlier that day. Lena’s voice piped up cheerfully.

_“McCree, I’ll be making my descent soon. Are you and Symmetra on your way to the extraction point?”_

Jesse lifted a hand to his ear, and Satya looked up. “We’ll be there shortly.” He looked to Satya. “You ready to go?”

She nodded, and reached into her handbag, but he lifted a hand to stop her and reached for his own wallet, dropping a handful of bills onto the table. She didn’t try to stop him, reaching for her bags as he shouldered his own. He held out a hand for one of her suitcases; she gave it to him without argument, and he headed for the door.

He paused when she realised she was not following. When he turned, he found her lingering near her seat, looking out into the cafe. He couldn’t see her face, but there was a wistfulness in her posture. After a moment, she looked to the waitress, who was standing near the counter, and lifted her hand in a small, shy wave.

The waitress returned it, and Jesse knew if she could smile, she would be.

And then Satya turned, face steely, and marched towards the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll try my very best to have another chapter up this week, because I won't be able to at all for the next two weeks, but I can't make any promises.  
> If it looks like Jesse didn't mention some characters... well, they'll be coming soon enough. c:


	5. Chapter 5

As soon as they took off from the outskirts of Utopaea, Jesse sat back, pulled his hat down over his face, and went right to sleep. This left Satya with Lena as her only company, and while Lena apologised if she was being a little too talkative, Satya found that her chatter was almost overwhelming. Despite this, Satya found herself feeling relieved that Lena seemed to like her, even though she surely had to have been fed lies about Rio and Vishkar by Lúcio.

That said, Lena’s enthusastic but one-sided conversation soon became too much for Satya to bear, and finally she told Lena as politely as she could manage that she was going to try and get some sleep, as they still had a long flight ahead of them and she had not gotten much rest in the past few days. It was the truth - sleep had been elusive ever since that day in Sanjay’s office, and she’d spent the vast majority of her waking hours getting ready to leave Utopaea. 

And yet sleep did not come.

Her mind was aggravatingly full with unnecessary worries. She _shouldn’t_ have cared whether or not her new teammates would be distrustful of her because of whatever tales dos Santos had woven, and yet she did. She _shouldn’t_ have even cared what they might think of her, and yet she did. Hostility would only make her mission harder, and the harder her mission was, the longer it would take, and the longer it took, the longer she would be away from Utopea as a fugitive vigilante…

But it was _only_ a mission. It did not matter how long it took or even if they liked her. All that mattered was that she completed it. Not even having to face dos Santos after the events in Rio would be enough to stop her. 

There was no need to be anxious over crossing paths with him. She - _Vishkar_ \- had done nothing wrong in Rio. Dos Santos was nothing but a troublemaker… but he was a troublemaker who had _won_ when he stole Vishkar technology and used it to push them out of Rio de Janeiro. Frustration fluttered in Satya’s ribcage at the thought of him continuing to use Vishkar’s technology to support his lawless ventures - the same lawless ventures she was now embarking on, whether she wanted to or not. She refused to let his thoughts on _freedom_ or his opinions on Vishkar would not get in her way of her mission.

At some point, her need for sleep won out over the thoughts flooding her head, because the next thing she knew Lena was calling over her shoulder for them to buckle up and get ready to land. Jesse did as he was told with a yawn, and Satya followed suit; glancing out the window, she saw that night had fallen. Below, she could see lights and a cloud of darkness she recognised as people waiting near the landing pad. Nervousness danced into her throat, but she swallowed it back and sat up straight, waiting. As they descended, faces became clearer, all of them unfamiliar except for one - Lúcio Correira dos Santos. He was staring up at the craft with a deep frown. 

After landing, Jesse and Lena helped her with her things, and they stepped out of the dropship together. The waiting group of mismatched individuals greeted them with surprising warmth - except, unsurprisingly, dos Santos, who hung back and watched with a deep frown. Satya tried to ignore him as Jesse introduced her to each member of the team; each name fluttered in one ear and out the other as each person shook her hand and said this or that or exchanged banter with each other - it was all so noisy and distracting that Satya felt her head beginning to spin.

After a short while of being jostled around and shaking hands and trying to put names to faces, Jesse and Lena managed to separate Satya from the group and take her to the dormitories. Lena zipped along, occasionally blinking ahead by several meters (Satya made a mental note to ask Jesse how she did that), but when Jesse made no effort to catch up with her, Satya chose not to try as well, instead matching Jesse’s long, relaxed strides.

“For the time bein’, there ain’t too many of us, so everyone’s got a room to themselves,” Jesse said. “‘Course, that could change if more people show up, but for now…”

“This one’s empty!” Lena called from down the hall, then disappeared into a room. 

It wasn’t a particularly large room, just big enough to comfortably house two people; on either side of the room was a twin bed, a desk, and a closet; in between was a door that led to what Satya assumed was a small bathroom. Each side of the room had a few shelves above the desks, as well as a small dresser. 

Lena was setting Satya’s suitcase in the middle of the room. “Will you need any help unpacking? I’m happy to help.”

“No, I think I’ll be fine on my own,” Satya said. “You’ve been more than enough help as it is.”

“Well, if you need anything, my room’s just to the left of Hana’s,” Lena said. “You can’t miss it - her door’s got stickers all over it. Ah! That reminds me, Hana wanted me to play a game with her! I’d better go before Genji takes my place. It’s been nice meeting you, Satya! And it’s great to have you on the team!”

With that, Lena was gone, leaving nothing but a lingering blue trail in her place. Jesse shook his head and turned to Satya, giving her a small smile as he set her other suitcase down.

“I’m sure you’re tired, so I’ll leave you to your unpackin’,” he said. “If you’d like, I’ll come by tomorrow mornin’ and show you ‘round the Watchpoint. Help you get acquainted. It ain’t the biggest Watchpoint we got, but it’s easy to get lost here.”

“I would very much appreciate that,” Satya said, returning his smile with a small one of her own.

“Well, then…” Jesse tipped his hat to her, stepping towards the door. “Have a good evenin’, Miss Vaswani.”

With that, he turned and left, and when the door closed behind him Satya was finally alone. She looked around the unfamiliar room with a sigh, then moved to pull her suitcases towards the left side of the room. She had just unzipped the first suitcase and opened the closet when there was a knock at her door. Frowning, Satya rose to open the door.

On the other side was a woman, her blonde hair pulled up into a high ponytail. Satya recognised her from earlier, but struggled to put a name to the face. Jesse had called her Angie, or something… “Can I help you?”

“Sorry to bother you,” the woman said, her words touched by a soft accent. She extended a hand for Satya to shake. “I know you must be tired, but I wanted to formally introduce myself. I’m Dr. Angela Ziegler - Mercy, in the field.”

Ah, _Angela._ Yes, Satya remembered now. She shook Angela’s hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Dr. Ziegler.” 

“Just Angela is fine when I’m not in my office,” Angela said. “Speaking of which, the infirmary isn’t too far from here; if you go to the end of the hall and take a left, it’s just past the mess hall. I’m there most of the time, but if there’s ever an emergency, you can always ask Athena to page me.”

“Athena?” Satya repeated. She didn’t remember meeting any Athena, but there had been so many people and so much noise…

“Oh, yes. Athena is an AI - she’s integrated into every Watchpoint. If you ever have any questions, just call and she’ll answer. Athena?” Angela looked up.

A smooth, accented voice answered. “Yes, Dr. Ziegler?”

“This is Satya Vaswani. As of today, she’ll be joining us.”

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Vaswani.” The AI paused briefly. “I see you haven’t been entered into the database. You should do that as soon as possible, Miss Vaswani, so that I can give you access to the rest of the Watchpoint, as well as Overwatch resources.”

Satya was no stranger to artificial intelligence; many Vishkar buildings were integrated with personal assistant systems. As Athena spoke, Satya remembered Winston mentioning her name, as well as the same procedure that Athena was speaking of now. 

“Yes, I recall Winston said something about that the last time I called him,” Satya said. “I’ll attend to that first thing in the morning.”

“Very well.”

“Thank you, Athena,” Angela said, and the AI fell silent - dismissed, Satya presumed. “Like I said, you can call Athena at any time if you need a hand.”

“Thank you for letting me know, Dr. Ziegler,” Satya said. 

“Another thing, Miss Vaswani,” Angela said, and there was a note of seriousness to her voice. “I’d like to thank you for joining us. I wasn’t sure that this was all going to work out - and it still might not. You’re taking an enormous risk joining us, and we need all the help we can get.” Her face relaxed into a smile. “All these extra hands and new faces are really making a difference - not just in morale, but in the workload as well. Before Zenyatta arrived with Genji, I was the only person on site with any proper medical training who could take up a support role. And Lúcio has some experience with a street medic, and he’s made some amazing adjustments to that sonic amplifier of his…”

Satya’s face darkened at the name, and Angela paused, sensing the tension. After a moment, she spoke again.

“I understand you and Lúcio have some… history,” Angela said slowly. “He did tell us about Vishkar and the things they do.”

“We do,” Satya said, keeping her voice carefully neutral. “I’m sure he’s told you some _interesting_ things about me, as well.”

“He had his opinions,” Angela admitted. “All the same, Miss Vaswani, I have to believe that you have a reason to join us, and for that I have faith that you are a good person, despite what your employers have done.” She gave Satya a small, genuine smile. “Welcome to Overwatch, Satya - and again, thank you for joining us.”

With that and a quiet goodnight, Angela left Satya to the pit of guilt forming in her stomach, as her true reasons for joining were anything but noble.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not my best work, but a slightly longer chapter than the others (I think?). Sorry for taking so long!!! I'd say the next chapter will be up faster than this one, but I don't want to make promises I know I can't keep.


End file.
